June 17, 2004, Monday of the 11th week in ordinary time.

A reading from the first book of kings.

Naboth, the Jesreelite, had a vineyard in Jesrael, next to the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria.

Ahab said to Naboth,

Give me your vineyard to be my vegetable garden,

since it is close by, next to my house.

I will give you a better vineyard in exchange,

or, if you prefer, I will give you its value in money.

Naboth answered him,

The Lord forbid that I should give you my ancestral heritage.

Ahab went home disturbed and angry at the answer Naboth the Jesraelite had made to him.

I will not give you my ancestral heritage.

Lying down on his bed, he turned away from food and would not eat.

His wife, Jezebel, came to him and said to him,

Why are you so angry that you will not eat?

He answered her,

Because I spoke to Naboth, the Jesreelite, and said to him,

Sell me your vineyard, or if you prefer, I will give you a vineyard in exchange. But he refused to let me have his vineyard. His wife Jezebel said to him,

A fine ruler over Israel you are indeed. Get up, eat, and be cheerful. I will obtain the vineyard of Naboth, the Jesraelite for you.

So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and, having sealed them with his seal, sent them to the elders

and to the nobles who lived in the same city with Naboth. This is what she wrote in the letters.

Proclaim a fast and set Naboth at the head of the people.

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